Quote:
Originally Posted by Spektyr
Thanks, that's exactly what I was asking about.
I do a fair amount of 3D printing so the "glass transition temperature" terminology is familiar to me - I just usually worry about it in the opposite direction. That all makes good sense.
I would recommend that if, in the future, someone asks about winter driving on the summer tires focus on this information rather than the "you'll have zero traction". The latter is a subjective concept that leaves a lot of room for speculation. I know people who think any rain at all reduces the traction of their normal tires so much that it's significantly dangerous to drive. People that will, with grave tones, advise you to "be sure and drive carefully" because there's a bit of a drizzle.
So when there's a serious, concrete reason NOT to drive on these tires in cold temperatures (the tires cross the glass transition point and literally become brittle) - use that. You're going to void the warranty of the tires, you're going to damage the tires, and you're not going to have any traction because the tires are more plastic than rubber at those temps.
New question:
How much better are the summer tires - in summer - than a quality set of all-weather or all-season tires?
I'm questioning whether I might prefer to put a good set of "year-round" tires on the stock wheels and find something decently lightweight to mount the summer tires to for track days (or simply "I'm gonna go DRIVE" days).
Or, if there's not a big loss in performance, maybe just swap the tires and not bother with a new set of wheels.
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I wouldn't consider the stock tires"performance". Summer yes, but only because they perform EVEN WORSE in the cold. I believe any quality all season is probably better than the stock tires. But I have to recommend a sticky summer tire, then switch to a good winter tire for cold seasons. That way you're safe and can fully enjoy the car, as much as possible, year round
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